In the 16th chapter of the book
of Psalm, let's read verse 8, verse 9, and verse 10. And in chapter 2 of Acts, we
will begin with verse 25 and read down. So in Psalm, first
of all, chapter 16, Christ dead and raised without seeing corruption. And here is the foundation of
that great truth. Verse 8. I have set the Lord
always before me. Because he is at my right hand,
I shall not be moved. Watch this. Therefore, my heart
is glad, and my glory rejoiceth, and my flesh also shall rest
in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul
in hell, neither wilt I suffer thine holy one to see corruption. All right, in Acts, the second
chapter, let's jump in at verse 25 and go down to verse 36. Verse 25, Paul, or rather Peter,
is speaking unto them about the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. And in verse 25, for David speaketh
concerning him. I foresaw the Lord always before
my face, and for He is on my right hand, that I should not
be moved. Therefore did my heart rejoice,
and my tongue was glad. Moreover also, my flesh shall
rest in hope. because thou wilt not leave my
soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine holy one to seek
corruption. Thou hast made known to me the
ways of life. Thou shalt make me full of joy
with my countenance. Men and brethren, Let me freely
speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and
buried, and his sepulcher, or grave, is with us unto this day. Therefore, being a prophet, knowing
that God had sworn unto him, with an oath to him, that of
the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise
up Christ to sit on his throne. He, seeing this before, spake
of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in
hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God
raised up, whereof we are all witnesses. Therefore, being by
the right hand of God exalted, having received of the Father
the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has shed forth this which
ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into
the heaven, but he saith himself. The LORD said unto my LORD, Sit
thou on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Conclusion. that all the house of Israel
know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus, whom you
have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now, we're interested
in that great text that said, I will not suffer thine holy
one to see corruption. And I'd like to begin by establishing
a point. a clear point made in regard
to our Lord and made by our Lord. And that is the one thing that
the Lord much and often declared during His earthly ministry was
this. that the Old Testament scripture
did contain prophecy and promises of him. The Lord made that clear
as he went about in his ministry. I'll give you some examples.
There is John chapter 5, Verse 39 he said this search the scripture
for in them you think you have eternal life they held a scripture
the Jews did as Containing the way unto eternal life everlasting
life. And indeed, in 2nd Timothy chapter
3 and verse 15, the scripture were able to make Timothy wise
unto salvation through that faith which is in Jesus Christ. The Lord is even more specific
in the fifth chapter of the Gospel of John and verse 46. where he
said, Moses wrote of me. Moses wrote things about me. And again, those two on the Emmaus
road, in Luke chapter 24 and verse 27, again in verse 44,
that there were things in Moses and in the psalm and in the prophet
concerning him, that these all three wrote of our Lord. By the way, you don't have to
turn there, but in the fifth chapter of the gospel of John
alone, our Lord lists at least A four-fold witness that he was
indeed come from God, that he was the Christ and the Messiah. Now four-fold witness. Here they are. A, in John chapter
5, 32 through verse 35, He brings forth the fact that John the
Baptist bore witness of him. John came, and he bore witness
of the truth, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the
world. And then, B, in John chapter
5 and verse 36, the works which the Father have given me to do,
they bear witness of me." Did anybody else ever do the mighty
works that were done by the Lord? And these works were evident
that He had come from God. And then see, in verse 37, the
Father Himself bears witness of me, such as saying, this is
my beloved Son, In whom I am well pleased, hear ye him. And then D, in verse 39 and verse
46, the scriptures bear witness of the one that God had sent
into the world, that he was indeed the Son of God. Nor is that all,
because other authors in the New Testament Scripture are often
saying to us, it is written, it is written, as it has been
written, that it might be fulfilled, which is written in the Scripture. So there are numerous mentions
in the New Testament Scripture that such and such is a fulfillment
concerning the Christ and the Old Testament Scripture. E.W. Hinstingberg wrote a book on
the Christology of the Old Testament. One of the chief objects of the
prophet was to give witness of Messiah, that when he came, he
might be recognized as the Messiah. in order, as Hinsingberg said,
and I quote, that he might be identified by comparing the prophecy
with the fulfillment, that it could be said, as in Luke chapter
four and verse 21, this day is this scripture fulfilled in your
ear. And he's referring to Isaiah
chapter 61, And verse one and two, as the Lord read from Isaiah
about himself, and then he said, this day is this fulfilled in
your ear. In John chapter 19, there are
at least four such saying that what occurred to the Lord was
a fulfillment of the Old Testament scripture. Here they are in verse
23, And verse 24, remember when the soldiers were fascinated
by the garment that our Lord was wearing? And they thought
it not well to tear it and rend it, to divide it each one apart. And so they rolled dice for it
to see whosever it might be. And they did that. that the scripture
might be fulfilled. That would be Psalm 22 and verse
18, they part my garments among them and cast lots for my vesture. In John 19, 24, these things
the soldiers did and fulfilled that verse in Psalm chapter 22. Secondly, in John 19, In verse
28 and verse 29, Jesus cried out in his agony upon the cross,
I thirst, as he cried out. And it fulfilled when they gave
him vinegar and gall to drink. It fulfilled Psalm 69 and verse
21. They gave me gall for my meat.
And in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. But there's
a third one in John 19, and that's in verse 31 through verse 36,
when the soldiers came to break the legs. of the crucified ones. And when they came to the Lord
Jesus Christ, they broke not his legs because he was dead
already. And that fulfilled Exodus chapter
12, 46. Numbers chapter 9 and verse 12,
a bone of the Passover lamb was not to be broken. And so coming
with their clubs to break the leg, they broke them not in the
case of our Lord. And then there is a fourth in
verse 39, of John chapter 19. Another scripture said, they
shall look on me whom they have pierced. And as they pierced
him and they looked upon him, it fulfilled Zechariah chapter
12 and verse 10. They shall look on me whom they
have pierced. Now, with this in our mind, that
Christ is heavily represented in the Old Testament Scripture,
let's transition to that grand text here in the second chapter
of the book of Acts. that without the fulfillment
of the prophecy, it would be almost impossible for anybody
but the most spiritual and enlightened to recognize the Messiah and
to identify him as such. For you remember that the faithful,
those with the grace of God in their heart under the old economy,
were in John 1.45 looking for him whom Moses And the law and the prophets
did right and the Lord mentioned the psalm chapter 24 and verse
44 as Speaking of him. He is declared. He is set forth. He's prophesied in the psalm
and Now, in Acts chapter 2, it is the day of Pentecost when
our text occurred. Some asked in verse 12 of Acts
chapter 2, what is the meaning of all of this? They heard men
speak in their own languages. They saw them speak with other
languages, our glossolalia, other languages and other speeches,
and some cried out, What is the meaning of this? Others were
more direct. They said in verse 13, while
these men are all drunk, they are inebriated under the spell
of new wine. And Peter says under them in
verse 16, no, these are not drunk as you imagine. This is that
that was prophesied by Joel. You'll find it in the prophet
Joel in chapter 2 and verse 28 through verse 32. The outpouring of the Spirit
prophesied by Joel in that place. Now coming to the 22nd verse
of Acts chapter 2 and following, where the Apostle Peter brings
Jesus of Nazareth into the equation. He says to them, the one that
you by wicked hands, crucified and slew, God has raised up again. The two things, you slew him
and God raised him up. God has overthrown, God has overruled
the wicked deed of the Sanhedrin court and has raised up Jesus
of Nazareth again. Not only raised him up, but set
him at his own right hand in the heavenly. And it is he that
has received from the Father the promise and has shed forth
this which you now see and hear. Jesus is the one who has poured
out the Holy Spirit upon you this day. And it did not happen
until Jesus was glorified. John chapter 7, 39 and John 16
and verse 7. Now the apostle Peter now declares
the main point about Jesus of Nazareth, whom you, he says to
them, recently crucified. not only had he been raised again
from the dead, but he had been exalted to the right hand of
God and made sovereign Lord and Christ. So those two things.
He has been raised from the dead. He has been exalted to the right
hand of God. I want us to look at verse 24
again. It's kind of like a connecting
verse in my mind. So here it is. Whom God hath
raised up. having loosed the pains of death,
because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. Now, I think it reaches back
to verse 23. Him being slain, God has raised
up, loosing the pains of death. And it reaches ahead to verse
25, not possible that he should be held in there because that
David wrote in the 16th Psalm. And it is summed up in verse
27, you will not leave my soul in hell neither allow
or permit thine holy one to see corruption. You have that word
of promise and you will not leave my soul in hell and will not
allow my flesh to see corruption, to be swallowed up, to be held
and consumed and kept under the power of death. Now, think of
the question of the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts chapter 8 and
verse 34. He was reading from the prophet
Isaiah, the grand 53rd chapter, as he rolled along in his chariot
on his way back onto Ethiopia. And when Philip came and joined
himself to him and said, you understand what you're reading?
How can I, he said, except I be God? And then he asked this question,
of whom is the prophet speaking? Of himself or of some other man? Now, is David speaking only of
himself in the 16th Psalm or Is he speaking of someone else
too or also? The things in the 16th Psalm,
there are some of them that do pertain unto David as a man. For example, his feelings, his
experiences, his hopes. as a child of God. And yet, as
with all messianic psalms, there are certain things that only
apply to the greater David or to the Messiah himself. Both Peter here and Paul in Acts
chapter 13 apply David's words to the Messiah. in both places. Both apostles speaking by the
Spirit of God apply them unto Messiah about one who was to
die but was to see no corruption and that one is not David himself. It is Christ. And Peter said
that David was speaking of the resurrection of Christ when he
said those things. Now, there are two things here,
again, and I want to repeat and emphasize this, that are true
of Christ from which David is definitely excluded. Two things
here with regard to David that cannot apply to him, but must
apply to someone else. Number one, David was not resurrected
out of the grave. He saw corruption. David was
not resurrected. For in verse 29, The patriarch
David died, was buried, and his tomb or sepulcher is with us
unto this day. There on the south side of Jerusalem
near the pool of Siloam. You can see that in Nehemiah
chapter 3 verse 16. David's grave was yet then cared
for and marked. Paul is very plain. Spoken on
the same subject and the passage in Acts 13 and verse 36 that
David after serving God in his own generation Here's what Paul
said Quote he fell on sleep that is he died and was laid under
his father's and saw Corruption, but the next verse said he that
God raised up saw no corruption Now, the not seeing corruption
pertains to the resurrection, as Peter said in verse 31 of
the second chapter of Acts. Now, none claimed that David
had been resurrected. None claimed that. It was not
a claim made among the Jew concerning David. David was not resurrected. He stayed in his grave. And if
you want to be blunt, he's still there until this day. The second
thing about David and that psalm, David was not ascended into the
heavens, as we read in verse 36. Neither did any claim that
he was, unlike some who claim that Mary has ascended into heaven. None have ever claimed that David
ascended into the heaven. But Christ, as the apostle tells
us, is at the right hand of God exalted. And Peter had seen him
when he went up. Peter was standing there in the
ascension of our Lord in Acts 1 verse 9 and 10 when a cloud
received the Lord out of their sight. He was a witness, too,
of the resurrection. Acts chapter 2 and 32. He saw the Lord after he was
resurrected. He ran to the empty tomb, and
he saw it empty, and he saw the Lord with his very own eye ascend
into heaven. So that he and others saw the
empty tomb, they saw the resurrected Christ, and they beheld him go
to heaven with their very own eye. So David is not ascended
into heaven, but he wrote In Psalm 110 and verse 1, quoted
in Acts 2 and verse 34, the Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou on
my right hand. Now, here's something. not to
be overlooked in Peter's preaching unto the Jew. And most of this
is directed to the Jew. Language like this, ye men of
Judea, ye men of Israel, verse 14, verse 22, and verse 36. In Acts chapter two, the apostle
is preaching primarily onto Jews that were gathered there. And
on that occasion, the apostle emphasizes two things that prove
Christ is the promised Messiah indeed. Two things that separate
the Messiah from ordinary men. and elevate him above the prophet? And what are those two things
as we ask the question and raise them? What two things, I've already
said it, did the apostle declare about the Lord Jesus Christ? Number one, He declared that
though Jesus of Nazareth had been put to death, yet God raised
him up. He had died, but God had delivered
him. Verse 24, whom God raised up,
having loose the pangs or the cords of death, because It was
not possible that he be held by them from the 16th Psalm. Now, the second thing that Peter
declares concerning the Lord is that he has been exalted to
the right hand of God on high. He has been made a sovereign
Lord and Christ. That's in verse 36. And it's
from Psalm 110. The Lord said to my Lord, sit
thou on my right hand." And here is the wisdom of the Apostle
Peter. He shows that David as a prophet,
in verse 30, and speaking by the Spirit, had long ago predicted
the same two things. that Peter preached about Christ
on the day of Pentecost, that he was preaching to the Jew,
the same two things that David declared Peter is preaching unto
them. And that is that Christ was the
object of those prophecies from David, that he would be raised
from the dead, that he would not see any corruption, that
he would not be held in the grave by death, and that he would sit
on the right hand of God on high. Now let's consider the second
of these from Acts 2, 34 and verse 35. For David is not ascended
into the heaven, But he saith himself, the Lord said unto my
Lord, sit thou on my right hand until I make thine enemies thy
footstool. Now this is, as I said, from
Psalm 110 and verse 1. By the way, the same Psalm where
in verse four is the ancient oath made to the Lord, you are
a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. But the first
verse says this, the Lord said unto my Lord, stop now and look
at that. This is one member of the Godhead
speaking to another member. And as Spurgeon wrote, it is
Jehovah speaking to Messiah. Jehovah said to Messiah. Now some expositors would have
it this way. Jehovah said unto my Adonai,
or Lord, Jehovah said unto my Lord. Andrew Jukes in his book,
The Names of God in the Holy Scripture, said that this name
Adonai was first used by Abraham in the scripture in Genesis chapter
15 and verse 2. And it means Lord or Master. Now concerning Psalm 110, And
verse 1, let's pardon, if you will, a digression. But the Lord
Christ referred also to this verse or passage in the Gospel
of Matthew, chapter 22, verse 41 through verse 46. in dealing with some Pharisees,
smart-alecks, and self-righteous, and smug that they were, about
his identity. He asked them this question. What do you think of Christ?
What think ye of him, of Christ? Then he followed it with another.
Whose son is he? And so the question it is, what
do you think of Christ and whose son is he? Oh, they quickly answered,
that's easy. They said, he's the son of David. Christ follows up with another
question in verse 43. How then does David, speaking
in the Spirit, call him Lord? Oh, he's the son of David, they
said, without hesitation. Well, how is it then that David,
a prophet, speaking in the spirit at the time, called him Lord,
referred to him as my Lord? Verse 45, if David called him
Lord, how is he his son? Now, true as to the flesh, Jesus
was of the house and the lineage of David. You see that in Matthew
chapter 1 and verse 1, even called there the son of David. But as Messiah, he was David's
Lord. As to the flesh, he was out of
the house of David, but as to his Messiahship, he was David's
Lord. As Jesus, as to the flesh, was
a son of Mary, but he was also her Lord. He was the Lord, the
Lord of all. Luke 1, 46 and 47. She was not the mother of God.
God was and Christ was her Lord. Be that as it may, David himself,
as he prophesied of the resurrection of Christ, also prophesied or
predicted the ascension of the Lord to the right hand of the
Father in power. Sit thou on my right hand. Let's say more about the two
things. which David predicted, which were accomplished in Christ,
and which Peter declared to the Jews on Pentecost. So as to his resurrection without
seeing corruption, we read it in verse 24. In Acts 2 and 27. Thou wilt not leave my soul in
hell, neither suffer, permit, allow, or give thine Holy One
to see corruption. Now, the great contrast here
is you crucified him, God raised him up. You put him to death,
God gave him life. You killed him, God raised him
again out of the grave. By the way, this is an antithesis
that Peter often uses in preaching to the Jew in those early days. at Pentecost and after. In Acts 3, 14 and 15, he does
it again. You killed him. God raised him
up. In chapter 4, verse 10, he does
it again. You builders set aside the stone. God has made him the head of
the corner. Chapter 5, 30 and 31, you kill
the prince of life. But God raised him again. And
even down at Carnetius' house, in the 10th chapter of Acts,
in verse 39 and 40, he makes the same claim. They put him
to death, but God raised him up again. Now, let's focus on
the statement that it was not possible for him to see corruption. Not possible for him to be held
under the power of death, the cords and the pangs of it. Not
possible that the Holy One of God should be kept under the
power of death. Now we raise the question, why
is it impossible? Why is it? Wherein lies this
impossibility? What makes it impossible that
the son should be held by death? What makes it beyond possible
that death should hold him and that forever? We know that the
common lot of the human family and the human experience is Death
not only holds, but it swallows up those that go to dwell there. Job said, Job 14, 10 through
12, man dies, man wastes away, he gives up the ghost. Where
is he? He lies down, and he riseth up
no more. Till the heavens be no more,
he lives not again upon the earth. That's the common lot of the
commonality of the race. Why the great exception in the
case of the Lord? Not possible to be held by death,
not possible for him to see corruption. Death had three days. and three-night limit on the
Lord, and that was it. Herein it could hold Him and
no more. Three days and three nights He
lay in the grave, but God delivered Him up. It was God that imposed
that three-day limit upon the Son of God in His grave, and
the Lord declared it several times in His ministry that He
would be one, two, three days And then he would rise up again. Let's look at John 2 and 19. You remember that? Destroy this
temple, and in three days I will raise it up again. He didn't
speak about the temple of worship in Jerusalem. He spoke about
his own body, John said. Again, in Matthew 12, in verse
40, As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of
the whale, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights
in the heart of the earth. Then there's Matthew 20 in verse
19, shall deliver him to the Gentile to mock and to scourge
and to crucify, and the third day he shall rise again. In Luke 24 and 46, thus it behooved
Christ to suffer and rise from the dead the third day. So often the time was given it
would be on the third day. His enemies mocked him when he
hung there upon the cross concerning his claim about the third day. Matthew 27 and verse 40. And when he was dead, and put
in the tomb. The Pharisees went and they petitioned
Pilate to set a guard and a seal upon his tomb, saying in Matthew
27, 63 and 64, they said unto Pilate, give us that. Quote, because that deceiver
said, while he was yet alive, after three days I will rise
again, lest his followers come, steal away his body, and perpetuate
the conspiracy that he has been risen again from the dead. And Pilate said, you got it.
Make it as sure as you can. And a watch and a seal upon the
tomb. Now, needless to say, there was
much at stake. in the resurrection of our Lord. There were the prophecies at
stake. There were the claims of our Lord himself to return. Why again is it impossible for
him to stay dead and in the grave? Was it because David predicted
it in the scripture? Well, that's part of it, because
no word of God shall ever fail or shall ever fall to the ground
at all. Not possible to beholden of it,
for David spoke concerning him and his resurrection. I want
us to consider a passage found in John chapter 12, 37 through
41. In spite of his many miracles,
many believe not. Listen. that the saying of Isaiah
might be fulfilled. That would be Isaiah 53 and verse
1. Who believed our report? To whom
is the arm of the Lord revealed? That the saying of Isaiah might
be fulfilled. Lord who believed I report therefore
they could not believe because Isaiah said Again, he has blinded
their eye and hardened their heart. So in all things good
or bad, the scriptures are fulfilled. Was it because the Lord himself
declared it that it must be so? Yes, for he witnessed the truth
in all things about himself. Also, it was not possible, however,
because of the eternal purpose of the almighty God. God ordained his death and God
ordained his resurrection. And God ordained the time of
his death and the time of his resurrection. F.F. Bruce put
it this way, quote, it was not possible that God's Messiah should
remain in the grip of death and if Messiah's death was ordained
by the determinate counsel of God, so was his resurrection
unto glory." Unquote. For he died for the sins of the
people and was raised for their justification. Romans 4 and 25. Paul tells the Corinthians, I
think we mentioned this a week or two ago, 1 Corinthians 15
and 17, if Christ is not raised, Your faith is vain, and ye are
yet in your sin. In 1 Corinthians 15 and verse
4, he rose again the third day according to the scripture. His humiliation ended with his
laying in the grave. His exaltation begins. with resurrection from the grave
and from the dead. Not only did the apostle emphasize
its importance in salvation. And now to quote Robert Dagny,
the apostles everywhere put it forth as their main tenet, that
is, the resurrection of the Lord. They preached far and wide in
those early days and thereafter. Dabney said the prime article
of their system and the main point of their testimony, it
was necessary so that he completely and absolutely destroy and conquer
necessary to vindicate God and Christ against the vile charges
brought against him by the Jew that he was an imposter and a
blasphemer and an enemy of Moses and such like. It would not be
possible to be held under death because he is the surety of the
elect acting in their behavior. A number of God's expositors
have said, when our surety is let out of his prison, then we
know that the debt is settled and settled for good. For God who made his son the
surety of the covenant required from him the full debt of the
sin of his people, and exacted of him the last farfling that
was owed by the elect of God. What's more, it was not possible
to be held under death past the appointed and the set time. It was not possible. for it to
continue to hold him because it was necessary that he rise
again to continue his work as our great high priest and particularly
in his intercession for them at the right hand of God. The
scripture declares him to be the intercessor of the people
of God. You have it in Romans 8 and 34. You have it that he is that one
who also lived to make intercession for us. So let's try to get a
better understanding of those mysterious words, that God loosed
the pains of death, the sorrows and the cords of death. It refers
either to the travail of his soul and his body in dying for
his people or in loosing him and raising him up again. Peter ascribes this loosing unto
God, whom they profess to worship. They profess to worship the very
God who had approved this one and who raised him up again.
Let's notice God's relation to him. Verse 22, Acts chapter 2,
a man approved of God among you, the one you came to worship.
Verse 23, him being delivered by the determined counsel of
God. Verse 24, God having loosed the
pains of death. Verse 30, God swore to him by
an oath. Verse 36, God made him Lord and
Christ. But it is clear that David and
Peter are referring to the resurrection of the Messiah and the apostle
has reference to the psalm, having loosed the pains of death. And it is clear that they're
talking about the exaltation of our Lord The Lord said to
my Lord, sit thou on my right hand. Now death is an awful,
awful state, and the Lord passed into it. submitted unto it, lay
three days and three nights, and then was raised up again. And having such, he bore the
wrath of God against our sin. He endured the curse of the law,
that he might redeem us from that law. Now the Jews could
not kill him before his time, and they couldn't keep him in
the grave beyond The appointed time, it was not possible. Not only was he raised from the
dead, but he's exalted. He's at the right hand of God.
He's made Lord and Christ, verse 36. So don't help talk to us
about this little weak, wimpy, Jesus, who begs to let somebody
come into his heart. He is sovereign over the hearts
of his people. Not only was he raised from the
dead, but he's at the right hand of God in glorious power. And rather than his death hinder
him from being a priest and saving his people, it was actually necessary
to accomplish it.